Posted on 05/23/2006 1:40:20 AM PDT by leadpenny
DMV agents look inside; Belman driver refuses to allow access, citing clients' privacy.
Date published: 5/22/2006
Department of Motor Vehicles staff brought a search tactic reportedly used at Northern Virginian proms a little farther south Saturday night. As limousines pulled up to Colonial Forge High School's junior-senior prom, DMV agents asked to search the vehicles.
Most drivers agreed to the searches, except for one.
Prom-goers began arriving at the Fredericksburg Expo & Conference Center around 8 p.m. Once limousine drivers dropped off passengers, DMV enforcement agents asked to see chauffeur licenses and to search vehicles for alcohol and drugs.
Most limousine drivers submitted to the searches, but Jason Belman, of Elsie Belman Limousine and Sedan Service, refused to let agents search his vehicle.
He dropped off his passengers, Robert Hensel Jr. and Ashley Payne, at around 9:30 p.m, he said. And then agents pulled over his 2005 Lincoln stretch limousine and two other limousines. They asked for documents and identification, to make sure he was licensed to drive a limo. He was.
"Then they asked if they could search my vehicle," Belman said. "I said, 'I'd rather not,' because my clients weren't there and I did not know if they wanted their things gone through. So I said no. They kinda got rude about it then."
Belman said the agents said they would call a K-9 unit.
"I said, 'Please do. I'm not hiding nothing.'"
Dogs sniffed outside the car without problem, but Belman refused their entry.
He was detained in his vehicle for about 50 minutes because he refused the search, he said.
"Another reason I didn't want them to search the vehicle is because they said, 'If anything's in there, you'll be charged. You're the captain of the vehicle.' Later they tried to change their story, but I know what I heard."
He asked the agents to call a friend of his on the Fredericksburg Police Force. When his friend showed up, Belman said he was released.
"I did not let the officers search my vehicle," he said.
His aunt, owner of the limousine service, backs her nephew's decision. Elsie Belman said when a policeman contacted her for permission to search the vehicle, she said no, too.
"I said, 'I just want to say one thing before I tell you no. Thomas Jefferson said, "The price of liberty is eternal vigilance." Eternal vigilance. That's why I'm saying no--not just for my clients' rights, but for mine, too. I'm not saying no to be mean.'
"The DMV has a right to ask for my license. They do not have a right to search the vehicle," Elsie Belman added.
The Fredericksburg Police said they were puzzled by the agents' behavior with Belman.
Sgt. Paul Peterson and another officer were hired by the Expo Center to work security at the prom.
"I thought he was a nice guy," Peterson said of Belman, adding he could understand why the driver was irritated by the DMV's treatment.
He said Fredericksburg Police have no right to search a vehicle, "not without probable cause of some kind of crime."
His colleague Sgt. Brian Layton, on duty last night, concurred.
"As [Belman] is the caretaker of his vehicle, he certainly has the right to deny any searches," Layton said.
However, Peterson said he didn't know if the DMV has some kind of special jurisdiction to conduct such searches.
"Ma'am," Peterson said when contacted yesterday, "You're asking something I can't answer."
However, "according to what the DMV [agents] said, last week, at another prom in Northern Virginia, they found illegal substances in one the limousines," he said.
The DMV investigator's name is Rick Nick, Peterson said. Neither Nick or the DMV could be reached for comment last night.
Prom dates Hensel and Payne were grateful for Belman's steadfastness.
"There was nothing we had to hide, but I appreciate the limousine service's decision to protect our privacy," Hensel, 21, said.
He noted agents asked Belman four or five times to search, but he continued to say no.
"The other drivers were intimidated," Hensel said.
He also noted that the agents were checking only limos--and he thought that wasn't fair.
"Passenger vehicles were going into the parking lot and they were just letting them pass by. I understand where [the agents] are coming from, but they need to do it for every vehicle."
Hensel said he highly recommends the Belman limousine service.
"People have the right to privacy," Belman said. "They have the right to not be searched--especially without probable cause."
To reach MELISSA NIX: 540/374-5418 Email: mnix@freelancestar.com
There is a discussion thread at the end of the article.
Good job on the part of the limo driver that denied them entry.
And the owner of the company back him up.
I don't understand why DMV has a police function anyway. Seems like the State Police should be involved and then only if they coordinate with local police.
backed.
ping
Yeah, I found that strange too. Perhaps VA has some sort of weird system where they have an enforcement wing of their DMV.
Anyway, this is a story that makes one feel good and proud to be an American. Too few people realize that most of the responsibility of securing their rights falls into their own hands. People need to be aware of what the government can and cannot do without permission, and then make an educated decision as to whether they want to allow them to do something in whatever situation they're in. Our public schools have really failed in this regard. I figure most people would still say OK to the police in most situations, but at least then they would be doing it out of courtesy and a feeling of civic pride, not out of fear.
They don't need to do it period.
nice to see someone with some balls. hurrah! kudos to the owners, too. i love it when someone stands up to the fascists. if i need a limo, i'm hiring you guys. man. it just makes me weep.
In many states, the DMV regulates commercial vehicles, but this is the first time I have heard of them shaking down limos anywhere.
I hate to even imply it, but is someone looking to sieze vehicles here?
I hope we get to follow this up. What is the probable cause? "You're driving a car -- somebody once committed a crime in a car." The DMV guy, (Rick Nick? Really?) needs a little refresher on the Constitution.
Politicians who remember what they did in limos at their proms and now have teenage kids.
I'm still chuckling as I tell you I love your post.
>>>>I don't understand why DMV has a police function anyway. Seems like the State Police should be involved and then only if they coordinate with local police.
>>Yeah, I found that strange too. Perhaps VA has some sort of weird system where they have an enforcement wing of their DMV.
VA must be mirroring the FedGov, where agents of every Tom, Dick, and Harry agency have police powers. The number of FedGov agencies thus is truly mind-boggling. It has been a topic of discussion here, in the past.
"Good job on the part of the limo driver that denied them entry."
Bingo. Whats next for these DMV agents "your papers pleez".
"He said Fredericksburg Police have no right to search a vehicle, "not without probable cause of some kind of crime.""
This line says a lot. If the police do not have the right, why would the DMV. Interesting that the DMV representative did not respond to questions.
And probably coming to a state near you . . . if it already hasn't.
Probably some Commie scumbag with something to hide.
Wow! God bless Mr. Belman!
Good for him!
:)
Kudos to the limo driver. I wonder if anything will happen to the DMV personnel since they illegally detained him? Probably nothing.
Good job by the limo driver in standing up to these yokels, actions like this erode public confidence in law enforcement officers. At least they didn't forcibly enter the vehicle, and I guess that from a legal point of view they have the right to ask, just as the driver has the right to refuse.
I think whoever authorized this little enforcement tactic should be reprimanded.
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